Sunlight streamed through the open window as Rei's eyes flickered open. Her fingers brushed across soft material, gripping it in her hands. Blinking, she looked down to find clean white sheets covering her body rather than the usual dirty rag she was used to. And the bedding was padded and springy beneath her. For once as she woke up, her body didn't ache from having to sleep on a rough stone floor. Sliding her legs off the bed, she felt smooth wooden floor panels beneath her feet as she walked to the window. Her hands rested on the open window sill as she leaned out, feeling a cool breeze on her face. There were no bars on the windows and no guards patrolling outside, just the chirping of morning birds and the rustle of leaves of the trees out on the lawn. This is all...real?

She pinched herself and yelped slightly. Real... Her nightwear rustled around her as she walked over to a nearby chair where her uniform was folded neatly for her. Her black shihakushou, ripped and torn from countless combats, had been replaced. Instead, a white kimono with red stripes down the arms was neatly folded there along with a red hakama, obi and juban. Shrugging off her sleeping clothes, she reached down and pulled the uniform on.

"You're already dressed, Rei-san?"

Rei looked around to find Kaoru standing there next to another bed in the room. The slumped figure of Yugito was lying on the third one, dark hair sprawled around her, hiding her face as she snored gently. That was it... It had been 2 days since the slave group had arrived in this place, led in the middle of the night by Shiro. They'd stayed in a visitors' quarters overnight and early the next morning they'd been brought before a panel of judges to inspect their worth as candidates to join the shinigami academy. Rei had stood there nervously as a group of old people had stared down wrinkly noses at her. Then after what seemed an age had passed, the senior elder had gestured and Shiro had stepped forward. An exchange of words had occurred and then Shiro had walked back over to them.

Heads slumped as he moved down the line, Reiko's included. Rei had begun to sweat. What if they had turned her down too? What would happen to them? Would they be taken back to the slave arena? Or...? Shiro came to stand before her, one hand resting on her shoulder. "Relax, Rei. You're accepted."

And that had been it. Of the twelve slaves who had escaped, only her, Yugito and Kaoru had been accepted. The others had been turned away but Shiro had ensured her that they'd be kept safe. The three girls had been shown their room, their new uniforms and then had been told to rest and wait until the time their training would begin.

Which brought them to now. The three girls were to begin their training today. Kaoru had started to wake Yugito up while Rei waited by the window again, just staring out at their new environment. Some shuffling and a few moments later, the three girls were ready to go, Yugito still yawning and rubbing her eyes. Looking over at Rei, she smiled wearily. "Shall we, Rei-chan?"

"Since when did you start calling me Rei-chan...?"

--

Do they have to stare…? Or talk behind their hands like that so obviously…? Rei walked through the packed corridors, trying to find her first class room. Yugito and Kaoru were close behind, the latter all but clinging to the back of her uniform while the former was trailing a bit behind, hands resting behind her head as she yawned widely, drawing still more stares.

They were still staring at the three girls. Rei dropped her gaze to the map clutched in her hands, doing her best to ignore them. But the harder she tried to close her senses off from them, the clearer their voices became in her ears. They reddened slightly as their words processed in her mind. Their whispers carried louder than if they just screamed in her ears.

As their talking got louder, head still down in her paper, she barely noticed as a group of older students emerged from a side room; several tall males with a few females in tow. She made to swerve and side-step around them but the lead figure matched her and drove directly into her, knocking her bodily into the ground. Kaoru, pressed almost entirely against her was caught in her descent, both of them toppling to the floor.

The corridor erupted in laughter, the people who had previously been attempting and failing to whisper discretely now pointing openly at them. Rolling aside to get off the smaller girl, Rei looked up to find the lead male standing over her, flanked by two of his cronies. He was a tall figure, broadly built and what most girls would call handsome…if his well-defined features weren't curled into a smirk of contempt.

"Well what do we have here? Slaves walking around as if they deserve to even breathe the same air as us? What dropping standards they have here…" The cronies laughed, the females giggling horribly behind them as the leader continued. "You girls should stay down there with the dirt where you belong."

Rei flushed a bit more but kept her eyes down, forcing herself not to reply. She didn't want trouble now, especially on her first day. She helped Kaoru to her feet and then knelt to pick up her dropped map when suddenly a sandaled foot came down on her hand. Her eyes flashed with anger as she looked up again to see the leader sneering at her, daring her to retaliate. Her free left hand balled into a fist, shaking with anger. Then a hand rested on her shoulder and Rei found Yugito standing in front of her.

She was still smiling sweetly as she leaned back…and then drove her head forward to crack into the leader's nose. A loud breaking sound reverberated around the stunned silent corridor as he fell to his knees, clutching at his blood-streaming face. The two boys flanking him came at her but Yugito thrust her hands forward, seizing them both by the balls and squeezing tightly. Their deep cries of pain rose in octave before cutting off as she released them, both dropping to the floor to writhe there, clutching at their nether regions.

"Anyone else got a problem…?" Yugito crackled her knuckles menacingly as the remaining four guys advanced on her. Rei made to back up her…was Yugito her friend now? But even as she braced to attack, a voice filled with authority was raised above the shouting of the surrounding students and everyone froze, a group parting to allow a tall man to approach. It was one of the elders who had overseen their admission a few nights ago. This close up, his stern grey eyes looked even more intimidating, set against his noble features; weathered skin and both deep grey hair and moustache.

He looked from the downed boys on the floor, across to Yugito who was suddenly looking sheepish and then finally to Rei. Another line seemed to appear on his brow as he continued to stare at her before turning away, calling out to the corridor as a whole. "All of you get to class immediately. If any of you are late, I'll see to your punishments personally. Go."

The group who'd tried to pick a fight with them hurried off, the uninjured ones carrying the downed ones, the girls running off behind them. The crowds dispersed, disappearing into classrooms. Picking up her map, Rei looked over at Yugito. "Hey…thanks there."

"No problem, Rei-chan." The other girl shrugged, dusting off her hands. "It seems we're all stuck in this situation together so we might's well get used to looking out for one another."

Rei nodded, looking around to find Kaoru and taking the younger girl's hand. Despite not being certain of everything herself, she felt a slight protectiveness towards her. Moving together, the three hurried through the corridors until they reached the place. The door swung open and they found themselves in an open training ground, a large rectangular courtyard of open gravel and sand. To their eyes, it was almost like a flashback to the arena.

"You three were a second away from being late! Get your asses over here now!"

A woman came marching over to them, shoulder-length golden-red hair flapping around behind her as she came to stop before them. A single pale green eye sized them up, the other hidden behind a mass of bandages. Yugito folded her arms, looking defiant. The corner of the woman's mouth twitched slightly and she shrugged. "Alright… Over there you'll be issued with your first sword. Once you get it, join the line of other students. Move it."

They hurried over to the far end of the courtyard where a small structure like a vendor's store stood. As they approached, a man passed out a sheathed blade to them each. It seemed to be a katana in length, perfectly balanced and formed. Rei accepted hers, hand wrapping around the tsuka and half-drawing the blade, seeing herself reflected in the polished sheen of the metal. Almost immediately, a surge of heat leapt from the leather-wrapped handle to her hand, almost causing her to drop it in surprise.

The man stared at her as did the other two girls. Trying to ignore them, she shoved the blade back into its saya and turned to move off to the line. There were a dozen others who glanced briefly at them before returning their attention to the woman at the front of the group who seemed to be the instructor here.

"Good morning, students. My name is Misaki Kurogane and I'll be your instructor in the Zanjutsu aspect of your training." The woman ran a hand through her hair, left hand resting on her sheathed blade as she paced up and down the line. "You've just been issued with your blade. This weapon is now your baby. There is nothing more important in this whole world than the sword you hold now."

"You'll carry this blade from this moment until the point you die in your career as a shinigami. Currently, it is an asauchi, a nameless blade. But as you bear this blade, your spirit will slowly become imprinted upon the metal. As this occurs, you may notice its shape and form changing as it becomes yours. This is the first stage your blade undergoes before it properly becomes a zanpakutou."

Kurogane drew the blade at her side, holding it up for everyone to see. It was a long katana, the blade pure black and gleaming in the morning sun. "This is my zanpakutou, Karaishou." She stabbed it into the ground in front of her. "By the time you leave the academy, you won't be expected to know the name of your blade but in time you'll learn its true name and then you'll be able to call upon its true power and release it to its true form. That's called the shikai or initial release."

"After that… There's one final step to take. The bankai or final release increases the power of your zanpakutou dramatically to almost ten times the strength of the shikai but this can only be acquired after centuries of training or even longer depending on the ability of the user. Then again...many shinigami are unable to manifest their bankai. Often only those of noble blood have enough spiritual power to call forth the full spirit of their sword."

"For now, split up in to pairs for sparring practice. Currently, those blades aren't sharp and will only gain an edge after your spirit becomes more strongly imprinted on it so nothing to worry about there." Kurogane waved a hand to signal for them to move off and they started to break up into twos. Rei turned to Kaoru and Yugito but the latter grinned at her, seizing the younger girl and steering her off with a slightly shocked expression on her face. She spun her around and marched her off, looking back to wink at Rei. "Sorry, Rei-chan. She's mine for now. I'm sure you'll find a nice sparring partner on your own."

Rei opened her mouth to protest but they had moved off and she sighed, looking around for someone else to team up with who didn't stare at her as if she were the dirt on the bottom of their sandals. She was just beginning to think she was going to have to stand around awkwardly when another boy around her age came jogging through the crowd to her.

He had messy dark hair, though it was more the tattoo design along his forearm that she noticed as he ran a hand through the mass, grinning widely as he came over to her. He extended a hand, which she took hesitantly, surprised by his forwardness. "Hey there. I'm Kaien Shiba. Nice to meet you. And you are…?"

"Rei. Rei Mikihara. And…Shiba? You're from that clan? I'm…surprised you're willing to deal with the likes of me, considering how…those others have been treating us since we got here." She glanced around again, noting the quick head turns as the other students looked away from staring at her and her sparring partner, failing horribly at acting casual.

The guy grinned, seemingly oblivious to the scrutiny. He waved a casual hand. "Don't worry about it. I'm not really that fussed about the whole noble thing, you know? Let's just forget about, alright?"

"Um…sure." This guy sure was a strange one… Rei accepted his explanation as they prepared to spar. Well…shall we?"

Kaien bowed slightly to her and hesitating at this entirely new formality, she followed suit as they took up places opposite each other, reaching for their blades. Fingers wrapping around the tsuka of her asauchi, she slowly drew it, feeling warmth on her skin as it flashed free. She brought it up in a guard position, watching for Kaien to take up his own fighting stance.

He raised his asauchi above his head before charging, slashing down for her. She twisted aside, sidestepping and slashing backwards for his throat, being blocked and then sliding back for a thrust. Another dodge and then a counter followed. Rei sprang away to avoid having the blunt blade reach her, stepping in and hammering away at his guard with her own katana.

They continued for the most part of the day, pausing for a lunch break before continuing. Since it was their first day with their new weapons, the woman in charge had said they'd been at this all day to gain complete familiarity with them before they started other things. Kurogane moved between pairs, giving advice to the less able combatants. She passed by them without saying anything though Rei could still feel the instructor's eyes on her after she'd moved off. The afternoon became evening as Rei sprang high, chopping down for Kaien's head with the blunt blade.

He continued to hold his ground as they fought, her wilder attacks being repelled by his greater defence while keeping him on the back foot. Many of the pairs around them had already stopped for temporary breaks, worn out by their short exchanges. Behind Kaien, Rei spotted Kaoru sitting down and rubbing her head where Yugito had tapped her with the flat of her blade and was now looked like she was trying to stop the younger girl from crying.

"You're going to have to focus on me or you're going to get hit, Rei." She snapped back to her own battle in time to duck low, catching an overhead swing just above her shoulder, pushing up and spinning around to face Kaien. She sighed. "My apologies… I'll have to rectify that now."

Eyes were on her again as she sprang forward. They were on both her and her sparring partner as she unleashed a flurry of blows, coming from all sides to force Kaien off his balance again. A direct stab to the gut forced him pivot aside but by then her foot was stamping in, cracking against his thigh.

He stumbled as she stepped in, driving the butt of her asauchi's tsuka into his chest, causing him to fall back. His own gasp was accompanied by that of the surrounding students as Rei drew back her sword-arm. Heat seemed to surge from the grip in her hand, a strange feeling coming over her arm as she slashed down with the blunt blade…only to see that it was no longer blunt. A razor-sharp edge cut down for Kaien's chest, protected only by the thick layer of cloth of his academy uniform. She had become so caught up in her movements again, her swing carried too much momentum for her to stop.

Then a hand reached out caught the blade dead, pinched by slender fingers. Rei's eyes widened as she looked past her own weapon to find the figure of Kurogane interposed between her and Kaien, her hand raised to stop the asauchi dead in its tracks. The instructor released the blade and it swung back to her side. The older woman was staring at her curiously, as was Kaien from behind her back, recovering. The asauchi was light in her hands as she held it up to her eyes. The razor edge of her weapon had vanished, leaving the blunt blade identical to the ones issued to each of the academy students.

Sweat ran down Rei's brow as she let the blade fall. She'd come close to wounding or even killing Kaien when she'd only just met him. What was that…? Kurogane had said these blades responded to the wielder's spirit and had their soul imprinted on it… Was that the nature of her spirit…? The soul of a killer…?

"I think…we can call for a stop for today, students." There were sighs of relief and groans of pain as the students picked themselves up slowly and started trudging off indoors for a hot meal, the smells of it already wafting over the evening breeze. Rei remained where she was, clutching at her asauchi, left gripped tightly around the blade. It pressed into her flesh but didn't cut the skin. It truly was still blunt.

"Hey…if you keep squeezing it like that you might hurt yourself." She looked up in surprise to find Kaien standing there, looking at her with that same friendly expression from earlier, arms folded and asauchi resting at his side. She opened her mouth to apologise but he held up a hand, waving it off. "Don't worry about it. Nothing happened so we can forget about it for now. We should get moving now before dinner gets cold, right?"

"Yes… Yes, let's go." She nodded, taking one more look at her asauchi before sliding the weapon back into its sheath and following him indoors, meeting Yugito and a shell-shocked looking Kaoru as they all headed off into the warmth and light of the academy.

--

"Who's there…?"

Pacing around the training courtyard where she'd been holding her class today, Misaki Kurogane stopped, looking around in the darkness for the figure lurking out there. There… She spun, drawing her zanpakutou in a flash as she pivoted, cutting downwards with Karaishou for her mysterious visitor. A hand reached out of the darkness, catching the black blade between its fingers as the rest of the figure emerged.

She sighed, pulling her zanpakutou free and shoving it back into its sheath. "I swear…you just sneak up on me all the time to practice that technique of yours."

Shiro grinned, letting his hand drop to his side as he pulled back his hood, revealing the face of her former instructor and captain. Relieved of his zanpakutou and command, he was unarmed, clad in a simple dark blue shihakusho. A pair of sunglasses replaced the normal strip of cloth he wore across his eyes.

"Maybe… I remember you seemed to keep bugging people to swing a sword at you for month or two after I taught it to you until you learned to do it without ending up in the 4th Division's infirmary." He shrugged, glancing to the building where the students had exited to several moments before. "So…how's she doing?"

"Rei…?" Misaki crossed her arms, musing on it for a moment before replying. "She's…quite an unusual person, actually. She seems to have a very strong spiritual presence but she doesn't realise her own abilities…and she has no control over herself. I suppose that could be attributed to her background…"

"On top of that… It seems she's bonded to her asauchi extremely fast. Though it was only for a moment, it became a zanpakutou when she was fighting the Shiba boy. If I hadn't stepped in, we might have had to explain to their family how one of his peers ended up killing him right now. That'd be some messy business."

"Tell me about it… Bad enough I have my old clan after my ass but to have the Shiba clan breathing down my neck because some student I brought in killed one of their sons." He sighed. "Alright…I shouldn't keep you much longer. We can catch up another time when I'm not sneaking into this place after dark."

"Of course. I'll be seeing you around a lot, I guess, captain." Turning to go, she walked slowly towards the building. She waved a hand back to him as he leapt off away into the night. "Goodnight, captain."

"Goodnight, lieutenant."